I’ve talked a lot about my pickiest eater. He’s a tough nut to crack because a) I love food so much that I just don’t understand his level of pickiness and b) the foods he likes and doesn’t like seem to have no rhyme or reason. Meat? Dislike (except for bacon…I do get that). Fish? Like. Sauce? Dislike. Saucy sandwiches like Sloppy Joes or Meatball Subs? Like. Two things he’s always liked since he was old enough to eat table food are macaroni and cheese and bell peppers (which really befuddled me because I didn’t like bell peppers until I was an adult.) So this recipe is for him–this meat-free meal is loaded up with so much awesome stuff that you actually only need one box of macaroni and cheese to make 4-6 stuffed peppers.

Cook the macaroni and cheese according to the package directions, using the 2 tablespoons of butter and the milk to prepare it. When it’s ready, add the black beans, corn, green onions, cilantro, tomato, lime juice, and 1/2 of the pepper jack cheese.

Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds and internal membranes. Cut a very thin layer off the bottom of each pepper, not enough to cut through to the hollow inside, but just enough to provide a flat surface for the pepper to sit on. Fill each pepper with the macaroni and cheese mixture.

Sprinkle each pepper with the reserved pepper jack cheese.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until the peppers are heated through and the cheese is melted (you might want to turn on the low broiler for the last minute or two to brown the cheese just a little bit). Serve immediately. Makes 4-6 servings.

Cook the macaroni and cheese according to the package directions, using the 2 tablespoons of butter and the milk to prepare it. When it’s ready, add the black beans, corn, green onions, cilantro, tomato, lime juice, and 1/2 of the pepper jack cheese.

Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds and internal membranes. Cut a very thin layer off the bottom of each pepper, not enough to cut through to the hollow inside, but just enough to provide a flat surface for the pepper to sit on. Fill each pepper with the macaroni and cheese mixture. Sprinkle each pepper with the reserved pepper jack cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until the peppers are heated through and the cheese is melted (you might want to turn on the low broiler for the last minute or two to brown the cheese just a little bit). Serve immediately. Makes 4-6 servings.

This sounds really delicious and it’s very creative! I could see doing cooked rice with all the mix-ins, too, if Mac and Cheese isn’t your thing. Thanks for this idea, it sounds like something new my family would really like! And bell peppers, especially the red, orange, and yellow ones, are so nutritious, this is a great way to sneak in veggie nutrition, too.

I have to ask, how much spice is actually in this mac and cheese? My son is super picky about anything that has a remote flavor of “spicy” in it. I have started calling anything slightly spicy, flavor. So now he tells me thing have too much flavor and refuses to eat them. I think these sound amazing and really want to try them. Thoughts?

By itself, it’s on the spicy side. I like the kick, but it was too much for my kids. However, once everything is mixed together, the spiciness goes down. If you’re worried, I would probably sub another kind of cheese, but it’s really not too bad. Hope that helps!

I have been wondering about all these new Kraft Mac & Cheese products – can you actually taste the cheese? The regular kind does not have any cheese flavour at all to me. Maybe it’s because I was raised in England where cheese has a much stronger flavour – I only ever buy sharp or extra sharp cheddar here because anything milder has no taste to me.

Kids are irrational in their food preferences and often very influenced by the equally irrational likes/dislikes of friends or relatives. My niece loved sauteed mushrooms when she was 4-5. When she started school, all of sudden she hated mushrooms. A few years later, she found out that my stepson, who is two years older than she is loves mushrooms. Instantly, her love of ‘shrooms was back. My youngest sibling’s favorite soup was tomato, favorite foods were spaghetti (tomato meat sauce), tacos and pepperoni pizza, ate ketchup on everything, including using it as salad dressing, but would not eat a raw tomato even if it meant going without dessert. Everyone else in the family loves them and she happily ate any other veggie except canned asparagus (which I totally understand, then and now, yuk). I had to bribe AND threaten my nephew to get him to try chocolate chip cheesecake (he liked it), but even as a young kid he would happily try any seafood while most of his would brave anything but fish sticks. It’s just weird. Me? Most of my dislikes are of a textural nature so I’ll eat a given ingredient prepared some ways, but not others. I guess we’re all a bit weird. The only thing I can think of I flat out won’t eat is beets, no matter what you do to them. Sucks, because they’re my favorite color, lol.

I have followed you guys for a long time. I love your recipes! Every time I take them to a gathering I get compliments. I love your commentary too. It’s fun and funny, interesting and insightful. I have to say, though that I am really disappointed with all the new advertising. I feel like I can’t navigate your website without closing ten banner ads first. And your endorsements of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese have left me feeling a lot less trusting of your opinions and advise. I just thought you might like to know what one loyal, disappointed follower thinks

I’m with Shelley with the banner ads. I know that’s how you make your money, but it is a real pain to have to close them every single time you pull up your site. I, too, am ready for your own recipes instead mac-n-cheese stuff. I don’t mind those Kraft recipes, but maybe as bonus posts instead?

Not trying to be rude here, BUT it literally takes 2 seconds to hit the X button and close the banners! I find it wierd that people complain about a little advertisement and recipe choices on a FREE blog! Really!? I actually think the mac-n-cheese recipes are a great idea for a quick and easy meal. Here are my thoughts, if they post a recipe you don’t like, JUST DON’T MAKE IT OR COMPLAIN ABOUT IT! Sometimes (but very rarely!), I find a blog post where I think that is not for my family! I just check back in few days and there is always something else to try! Just wanted to give a shout out to Kate and Sara and say thanks for all the great and FREE recipes! 😉 Don’t let a few negative comments get ya down! I just get annoyed when people act this way! Who the heck peed in ya cheerios! Ha! Maybe next time say something like, ‘Hey! I would love to see more recipes that were like this or that were like this.’ Anyway everyone have a good day and spread a little cheer! Ha! 😉

So I made this last night for dinner. I used a gluten free macaroni and cheese from Sam Mills because we have to eat GF at my house due to celiac disease, and since it was plain I added a teaspoon of cumin and a half teaspoon of chipotle chili powder to the prepared mac and cheese, then followed the rest of the recipe. It was outstanding and my family loved it! Way to score a creative, delicious meatless meal with a lot of added vegetable nutrition. Thanks for sharing!

I ate some of the filling by itself to taste it before I stuffed the peppers, and it’s good enough to eat plain or serve with grilled chicken. Anyway, my peppers were crisp-tender after 15 minutes – still had a bit of a snap to them, but soft enough that you could tell they’d been roasted in the oven. They definitely weren’t soggy at all, and I needed a fork and butter knife to cut them.

I made these tonight and they were delicious! My kids are whimps so I used Colby Jack instead of pepper jack. They were still great and had tons of flavor!
I appreciate the occasional shotcuts like the Kraft Mac&Cheese:)